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Friday | Apr 06, 2012

Big Opera is Back! Announcing our 2012-2013 Season

Opera Omaha Announces 2012/2013 Season

Opera Omaha is pleased to announce their 2012/2013 season. This will be the 55th year that Opera Omaha has brought world-class opera to the Omaha Metro area. Premiere performances, collaboration, and classic grand opera will be the hallmarks of what will prove to be a very exciting year for the company and its audience members. All three main-stage operas will be presented in the historic Orpheum Theater. This season brings glorious music, poignant romance, chilling mystery, and stunning, magnificent visual art.

“I’m delighted to announce the details of Opera Omaha’s bold new season,” says General Director Roger Weitz. “La Traviata is one of the most beloved operas of all time; our dynamic cast is in expert hands with director Jim de Blasis and conductor Joseph Rescigno. Jun Kaneko’s stunning new production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute must be seen to be believed; this opera will be a major event in the community. The season finishes with Hal France returning to Opera Omaha to conduct Bartok’s powerful opera, Bluebeard’s Castle, with the legendary Samuel Ramey in the title role. It’s a season not to be missed.”

Season Subscriptions will be on sale starting April 9; tickets to individual operas will go on sale after Labor Day. Season Subscriptions can be purchased by phone: 402-346-4398.

Details about the season:

La Traviata

Music by Giuseppe Verdi

Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave

October 5 and 7, 2012

Verdi’s tragic tale of a beautiful Parisian courtesan named Violetta and her young lover from a respectable provincial family is the first production of the Opera Omaha 2012/2013 season. Based on the Alexandre Dumas play “The Lady of the Camellias”, which also inspired the legendary Greta Garbo film “Camille”, this classic and touching tale of love and sacrifice written in 1853 has some of Verdi’s best-loved music. This production will evoke the world of 18thcentury Paris and the demimonde lifestyle of its main character.

Director James de Blasis returns to Opera Omaha, furthering a long history with the company including Lucia di Lammermoor with Beverly Sills in 1975. Conductor Joseph Rescigno is another returning artist, having led Jun Kaneko’s Madama Butterfly for the company in 2010.

Conductor: Joseph Rescigno

Director: James de Blasis

Role Cast

Violetta Inna Dukach

Alfredo Joshua Kohl

Germont Jake Gardner

Flora Leah Wool

Barone Douphol Kirk Vaughn Robinson

The Magic Flute

Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder

February 22 and 24, 2013

New Production

The exciting centerpiece offering of the new Opera Omaha season, The Magic Flute, will be designed by Omaha’s own visual artist Jun Kaneko whose talent in opera design is recognized from coast to coast; Opera Omaha is a co-producer with four other leading opera companies including San Francisco Opera and Washington National Opera in Washington, DC. The Magic Flute is a lighthearted tale of love and adventure, charmingly fantastical, utterly unique, and perfect for the entire family. Jun Kaneko’s newest creation promises to be a truly spectacular event for the Omaha Metro area.

Conductor: Nicholas Cleobury

Director: Garnett Bruce

Designer: Jun Kaneko

Role Cast

Papageno Corey McKern

Pamina Monica Yunus

Sarastro Tom McNichols

Bluebeard’s Castle

Music by Bela Bartok

Libretto by Bela Balazs

April 19 and 21, 2013

New Production

The captivating story of Duke Bluebeard, his new wife, Judith, and a castle containing seven mysterious doors. The secrets that lie behind them are revealed one by one through rich, haunting music. Hal France returns to Opera Omaha to conduct this complex work featuring brilliant orchestral writing. Mr. Samuel Ramey, one of the music world’s foremost interpreters of bass and bass-baritone operatic and concert repertoire will return to Omaha to perform the title role.

Opera Omaha will collaborate with several local arts organizations in bringing this story to life. Their participation in the production will help reveal the mysteries of the seven doors and demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of opera.

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